Tuesday, October 17, 2006

1 Thessalonians 3:12, "May the Lord make your love Increase and overflow"

It has been a while since I enter any entry to my blog. I see that it takes a measure of discipline to journal and to upload it to the blog. Since I am hoping that my blog entries can be useful for people who follow McCheyne's Bible reading schedule, I am hoping to update the blog more frequently.

My heart was greatly encouraged by God's word this morning from 1 Thessalonians 3:12, "May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you."

I am always humbled by the way apostle Paul prayed for people. The fact that he asked the Lord to make Thessalonians love increase and overflow underscores how hard it is to love like Jesus loves on our own. When I look back each day, often I feel discouraged for having failed to love. In the little things that I forget to do for my wife, the harsh tones I often use to get my kids to behave certain ways, people that I forget to think about and to pray for...

I have this sincere desire to love people, so I try to squeeze hard as I can to extract any little love I might have for others. Sad to say I often find myself empty. It is so much easier to put me first in everything. A case in point... when it is lunch time, my biological need to fill my empty stomach intensifies. Since my office is practically attached to where I live, I often come home to eat. I go straight to get myself something to eat and quickly I am meeting my biological needs. Then, I realize that my wife and my three, sometimes two of my daughters have not had anything to eat yet. Well, it has been crazy at home. Do I stop to help? Well, not before I can get some food in my mouth. Sad, isn't it?

Well, being disgusted by how selfish I can be, when I read how apostle Paul prayed for love to increase and overflow for others, I began to pray this for myself,for my wife and children, and for my church family. Wow! I am not kidding you when I say how different I felt praying for my wife, my children, my church family. There was so much energy and passion in my prayer for people; it was driven by deeper and genuine concern and care for them. My prayer was filled with hope knowing that God can and will increase and overflow my love, my wife and children's love and church family's love.

When I came back home from the morning prayer, I was excited to share this scripture verse to my wife. I apologized to her for being so selfish... something to that line... Then, we pray that our love for each other will increase, and for our children. What a great way to begin the day! I will again begin tomorrow morning asking my Lord Jesus to increase and overflow my love for his people!

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